Character Analysis
Red
This guy is one of Barnes's troll henchmen, and he's pretty strange-looking. He has "bright red hair that grew in a strange patchy pattern that even his hat couldn't completely hide" (18.98), and Laurel never learns his actual name, so his hair is how she differentiates him from their other kidnapper. He's pretty sadistic, too; he suggests that he and his buddy rip David and Laurel into shreds rather than tossing them into the river as instructed.
For these reasons, we don't feel too badly when Tamani snaps his neck, thus killing him. It's probably just desserts for all the killing we imagine Red has done in his years.
Scarface
This is another of Barnes's troll henchmen, and boy is he ugly. His face is "a mess of scars and discoloration […] one eye was nearly white and the other almost black" (18.98). Oddly, he has a "deep and smooth" voice (19.36), though. He reminisces with Red about how it "Feels good to be out doing this again" (19.36), where "this" refers to killing people. Um, okay dude. He dies when Tamani snaps his neck, so we're happy that he can't go around killing people anymore.
Bess
Appearing half-human and half-animal, Bess is one freaky critter. We overhear Barnes calling her Bess, but at first glance, it's not obvious what the gender is:
Its face was twisted lumps of flesh patched together almost at random. Large, crooked teeth poked out between its lips from a distended jaw topped by a bulbous monstrosity that might have been a nose. It was vaguely humanoid, and Laurel could see scraps of clothing wrapped around its shoulders and abdomen. But a collar lined its corded neck, giving it the appearance of a bizarre house pet. (18.100)
As scary as Bess is, we end up feeling kind of sorry for her. Tamani stuns her with a dart, and then kills her with a poison, explaining:
These are the ones I always regret. The ones too stupid to know what they're doing. They're no more guilty than a lion or tiger that stalks its prey, at least in the beginning. But once they're taught to be vicious faerie haters that obey their masters' every order, they'll never stop being dangerous. (22.37)
Aw, poor Bess. Rest in peace.
Maddie
Maddie is one of Laurel's dad's bookstore employees, and she's been there the longest of anyone: "Maddie had been working in that store for almost ten years now and, luckily, could about run the place herself" (17.1). When Laurel shows up to put in some hours because her dad is sick, Maddie hugs her and compliments her. Laurel feels good around her: "Maddie always smelled like cookies and spices and something else Laurel could never put her finger on" (17.5). It's our humble opinion that people who smell like cookies are often pretty awesome.
Her common-sense approach to running the store and her kindness help keep Laurel calm during the ordeal with her dad's illness. Three cheers for Maddie.
Shar
Along with Tamani, Shar is one of the main sentries in charge of guarding the gate on Laurel's parents' land. Since he's only the second faerie Laurel's ever seen at that point, she can't help but compare him to Tamani:
He had the same confident stance as Tamani and the same green eyes. His roots were green, too, but the rest of his hair was light blond and long—pulled back away from his face. Shar had the same perfection she still wasn't accustomed to seeing in Tamani; his face was rougher though, full of sharp angles where Tamani's was soft. (20.79)
Shar is also a bit more on-task than Tamani, reminding him that Laurel shouldn't learn certain secrets yet; he encourages Tamani to be careful when he goes to face Barnes and the other trolls, too. Perhaps cautious is Shar's middle name. You know, if faeries even have middle names.
Ryan
Ryan is friends with David and Chelsea, so he joins them for lunch on some of the days when Laurel is eating with them. He asks Chelsea to go to the costumed dance at school with him, and she accepts.
The Librarian
When Laurel goes to the public library to use the Internet to research faeries, she meets a librarian who is pretty friendly. She "leaned forward conspiratorially" (11.106) to inform Laurel about the one-hour rule which was instituted because of "a retired lady who would come in and play Internet Hearts all day" (11.106).
Mr. James
Laurel and David's biology teacher is a "tall, thin man" (1.3) who wears glasses and doesn't seem to have much of a sense of humor. Luckily he's not too strict, because we witness Laurel and David whispering a lot in class, and there don't seem to be consequences.
Jen and Brent
These are two of Laurel's dad's bookstore employees, and they seem like hardworking folks.
Molly, Joe, and Other Friends
These are some of the people that David says might come to the beach bonfire he's planning. But since Laurel doesn't end up going, we don't get to meet these folks.
The Senior at the Dance
While Laurel is dressed as a faerie at the school dance, the petals from her blossom begin to fall off. This one guy she recognizes, a senior, taps her on the shoulder to return one of the petals to her, saying, "Hey, this fell off when you stopped dancing. I figured you'd want it back" (12.23). He also asks David what he'd made the petal out of since it feels so real.
Steve Tanner
We never meet this dude, but Laurel notices a girl "doodling hearts for someone named Steve" (2.29) sitting next to her in biology class. David hypothesizes that it's Steven Tanner, who is "super-popular" (2.30). Hey, you couldn't have a story set in a high school without at least mentioning the popular clique, right?